Power assembly removal tool

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for removing and applying a power assembly from a diesel locomotive engine as a complete unit without removing the locomotive hood including a &#39;&#39;&#39;&#39;C&#39;&#39;&#39;&#39; shaped boom which can be attached at one end to an overhead crane or the like, a pair of plates pivotably connected to the other end of the boom and attachable to the power assembly, a hydraulic cylinder connected between the boom and plates for pivoting the plates and an attached assembly in a vertical plane and a hydraulic jack mounted on the boom for supplying hydraulic pressure to the cylinder.

United States Patent [191 James et al.

[451 Oct. 22, 1974 POWER ASSEMBLY REMOVAL TOOL [731 Assignees: The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway Company, Cleveland, Ohio; The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company, Baltimore, Md.

[22] Filed: Oct. 27, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 301,336

[52] US. Cl 294/67 AA, 294/67 R [51] Int. Cl. B66c l/22 [58] Field of Search 294/67 A, 67 AA, 67 AB, 294/67 B, 67 C, 78 A, 81 R, 86 LS, 88;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 732,884 7/1903 Normandin 294/67 A 1,195,518 8/1916 Simpson et a1. 294/67 A 3,301,587 l/ 1967 Heikkinen 294/67 AA 3,709,547 1/ 1973 Nutter 294/67 AA Primary Examiner-Evon C. Blunk Assistant Examiner-Johnny D. Cherry Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Cushman, Darby & Cushman ABSTRACT An apparatus for removing and applying a power assembly from a diesel locomotive engine as a complete unit without removing the locomotive hood including a C shaped boom which can be attached at one end to an overhead crane or the like, a pair of plates pivotably connected to the other end of the boom and attachable to the power assembly, a hydraulic cylinder connected between the boom and plates for pivoting the plates and an attached assembly in a vertical plane and a hydraulic jack mounted on the boom for supplying hydraulic pressure to the cylinder.

4 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTED nor 2 2 1914 MUN! 2 1 POWER ASSEMBLY REMOVAL TOOL BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to an apparatus for removing and replacing a fully assembled power assembly from a locomotive without removing the locomotive hood.

As part of normal railroad locomotive maintenance, parts of the power assembly in the locomotive are periodically replaced in the locomotive shop. This can be accomplished by either completely removing the locomotive hood which covers the power assembly and then lifting the assemblies up from their position in the locomotive or by disassembling the power assemblies for maintenance without removal. The normal'position of the hood precludes simply lifting out the units with a conventional overhead crane from their inclined position in the locomotive. Locomotive hoods can, of course, be opened at the side for access to the power assemblies.

Except for a major overhaul when the locomotive is to be in the shop for an extended period, it is economically impractical to remove the main locomotive hood and thus power assemblies are normally installed in separate pieces. However, when installing power assemblies in this piecemeal fashion, the'expected performance of the locomotive thereafter is considerably less than what would have resulted from installing a completely pre-assembled power assembly which has been tested as an entire assembly prior to insertion in the engine. The reason for this loss of performance is that the various pieces of the power assembly tend to be contaminated by dirt and other material always found on and within the diesel engine. For example, pieces of carbon, etc. tend to fall into the gasketed areas of the assembly while it is dsassembled and into the piston ring area in particular where frequently they cause premature failure of the assembly, and in many cases complete failure of the entire diesel engine. The installation of a pre-assembled power assembly permits testing of the entire assembly prior to insertion in the engine.

Another reason why the prevailing practice has been to disassemble the power assembly in place is the impossibility to date of a single man to physically handle a completely pre-assembled power assembly because of its weight and to ease it as a unit from and into its location in the diesel while maintaining the proper alignment with the engine and the access doors.

The present invention relates to a unique power assembly removal tool or apparatus in which power assemblies can be easily, quickly and safely removed as a complete unit from conventional locomotive engine with the locomotive hood in place and through the side opening of the hood. Further, with this invention, a single man can remove safely a heavy and bulky power assembly. The tool comprises a C-shaped boom which is attached at one end to a pulley which is, in turn, preferably connected to a conventional overhead crane or the like. A pair of plates which bolt fixedly to each other and to the accessible portion of a power assembly in place in the locomotive are pivotably attached to the other end of the C-shaped boom roughly below its point of attachment to the pulley which provides upward lift. Further, a hydraulic piston is connected between the boom and two plates which attach to the 2 power assembly and attached to the plates at a location separated from the pivotal attachment of those plates tothe boom so as to permit pivoting of the power assembly and plates in a vertical plane about the point of attachment of the plates to the boom as hydraulic pressure is added to and bled from the cylinder. In the embodiment described below, a conventional hydraulic jack which is manually operated is also attached to the boom with its hydraulic output connected to the cylinder for providing the hydraulic force to pivot the power assembly.

The plates can be easily and quickly attached to the power assembly and the assembly then removed by gradually pivoting and maneuvering the assembly out through the side opening in the locomotive hood. The tool does not just merely provide lift; it permits the power assembly to be moved in a prescribed way, particularly during the early part of its path after attachment to the assembly so that the assembly can be slid out quickly, without damage to itself or other parts. Because of the C-shaped boom, the location of the upwardly exerted force on the boom can be located roughly directly below the point of attachment of the boom to the power assembly without removing the 10- comotive hood.

Many other objects and purposes of the invention will become clear from the following detailed description of the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows a side view of the novel tool or apparatus of this invention removing a power assembly from a locomotive with the hood in place;

FIG. 2 shows a top view of the combination of plates for attaching the C-shaped boom to a power assembly; and

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the plates of FIG. 2 illustrating the attachment of those plates to the power assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Reference is now made to FIG. 1 which shows one embodiment of the novel invention of this application in operation removing a power assembly 20 from a conventional locomotive indicated as 22 having a locomotive hood indicated as 24 which is open to provide a side opening 26 for access to the power assemblies within the locomotive but with the hood in place directly above the power assemblies.

The novel tool of this invention includes a C-shaped boom 30 with a lifting eye 32 attached to one end as shown for connection to a conventional crane or the like (not shown) by a conventional pulley 34 and hook 36 as illustrated. Eye 32' can be attached to boom 30 at any of a number of different locations. Boom 30 may be shaped as an I-beam in cross section. At the other end of boom 30, a pair of plates 40 and 42 as shown in detail in FIGS. 2 and 3 are pivotally attached to boom 30 at a point of attachment 46 for pivoting about point 46 as described below.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, plate 40 includes member 50 through which pivot point 46 passes and which is welded to the remainder of the plate. It can best be seen in FIG. 2, a burnt out annular section 52 surrounds a large bolt 54 which is welded in place, passing through both plates 40 and 42 and attaching to power assembly 20 as can be seen in FIG. 3. Bolt 54 operates to hold plates 40 and 42 together. In addition, bolts 56 pass through lower plate 42 and bolt to suitable locations in power assembly 20. Lower plate 42 is also provided with a number of feet indicated as 60 which elevate the plates slightly above the power assembly. Plate 42 also provides passages indicated as 62 for receiving upwardly extending protuberances of power assembly 20.

Again referring to FIG. 1, the mechanism for premitting permitting and simple pivoting of plates 40 and 42 as well as power assembly about pivot point 46 includes a conventional hydraulic cylinder 64 which is pivotably attached to member 50 at point 66 as can be seen in FIG. 3 and to boom 30. When the hydraulic pressure is increased in conventional hydraulic cylinder 64, the cylinder expands causing power assembly 20 in FIG. 1 to pivot in the direction of arrow 70. Similarly, when the hydraulic pressure is reduced power assembly 20 pivots in the opposite direction of arrow 72.

A conventional hydraulic jack 74 is also mounted on boom 30 and connected to conventional hydraulic cylinder 64 via line 76. A manually extending arm 78 can be used to operate hydraulic jack 74 and provide oil which is supplied via line 76 to cylinder 64 to pivot the power assembly in the direction of arrow 70. Similarly, the oil can be released from hydraulic jack 74 to pivot power assembly 20 in the opposite direction. Any alternative arrangement to force hydraulic pressure to a cylinder arrangement such as cylinder 64 can, of course,

be employed.

As indicated above, the unique tool of this invention does not merely lift the power assembly out of the locomotive engine. lt permits the assembly to be pivotably aligned in space, changed in its alignment and lifted, despite its great weight, easily out of the cylinder block, without the necessity for removing the hood which normally overhangs the power assemblies. The power assembly must normally be positioned in the engine along a plane inclined 22 with respect to the vertical centerline of the diesel and this tool permits the power assembly to be easily positioned at this angle. Further, the C-shaped boom can be rotated in a horizontal plane through at least 320 for removing and installing. The plates can be easily removed and other structures substituted for removing and replacing other types of power assemblies and other engine components, such as auxillary generators, engine blowers, air brake stands, etc. Many changes and modifications in the above described embodiment of the invention can, of course, be made without departing from the scope of that invention. Accordingly, that scope is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for removing a power assembly from a locomotive comprising:

a C-shaped boom member,

means pivotably attached to one end of said boom member for attaching to said power assembly, including a first plate, means for pivotably attaching said first plate to said boom, a second plate having curved portions for engaging upwardly extending portions of the power assembly and extending parallel to said first plate and overlying said first plate, means for attaching said second plate to said first plate and means for attaching said second plate to said power assembly, and

hydraulic piston means pivotably attached between said boom member and said first plate and attached to said first plate at a location separated from the point of attachment of said boom member to said first plate for causing said first and second plates to pivot about said point of attachment to said first plate topermit positioning or aligning said power assembly to effect removal of a power assembly attached to said second plate.

2. An assembly as in claim 1 further including means attached to the other end of said boom member for suspending said boom member.

3. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said hydraulic piston means includes means for connecting said piston to a hydraulic source.

4. An assembly as in claim 3 wherein said source includes a hydraulic jack and including said jack. 

1. An apparatus for removing a power assembly from a locomotive comprising: a C-shaped boom member, means pivotably attached to one end of said boom member for attaching to said power assembly, including a first plate, means for pivotably attaching said first plate to said boom, a second plate having curved portions for engaging upwardly extending portions of the power assembly and extending parallel to said first plate and overlying said first plate, means for attaching said second plate to said first plate and means for attaching said second plate to said power assembly, and hydraulic piston means pivotably attached between said boom member and said first plate and attached to said first plate at a location separated from the point of attachment of said boom member to said first plate for causing said first and second plates to pivot about said point of attachment to said first plate to permit positioning or aligning said power assembly to effect removal of a power assembly attached to said second plate.
 2. An assembly as in claim 1 further including means attached to the other end of said boom member for suspending said boom member.
 3. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said hydraulic piston means includes means for connecting said piston to a hydraulic source.
 4. An assembly as in claim 3 wherein said source includes a hydraulic jack and including said jack. 